Developer must meet affordable housing requirements

Islington Councillor Diarmaid Ward has warned that any potential buyer of the Holloway Prison site should not try to overbid for the land in the hope that they can negotiate down the amount of affordable housing they provide on it later on. Ward’s comments came in an article written for the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies.

Ward draws attention to a High Court ruling earlier this year which states that developers cannot overpay for land then argue that they are not able to meet any of the borough’s genuinely affordable housing requirements because they overpaid for the land. The landmark ruling was regarding the site of the former Territorial Army building right next to Holloway Prison.